Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kortrijk and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,550 a month against $1,833 in Kortrijk, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

90

Cost of Living Index in Kortrijk
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Kortrijk Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
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Istanbul Living Index

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Kortrijk

🇧🇪 Belgium

$1,833

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,550

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Kortrijk and in Istanbul

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Kortrijk and in Istanbul actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,833 per month in Kortrijk vs $1,550 in Istanbul, rent included.

Kortrijk $1,833
Istanbul $1,550

A couple spends around $2,668 per month in Kortrijk vs $2,415 in Istanbul, rent included.

Kortrijk $2,668
Istanbul $2,415

A family of three spends $3,503 per month in Kortrijk vs $3,281 in Istanbul, rent included.

Kortrijk $3,503
Istanbul $3,281

Kortrijk costs about 18% more than Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Kortrijk and Istanbul sit above the global median – Kortrijk by 36%, Istanbul by 15%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.54 €20.12

$12.30 ₺607

83.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.5 €64.7

$54.7 ₺2,700

32.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.95 €9.77

$9.22 ₺455

18.76%

Cappuccino

$2.88 €2.57

$4.40 ₺217

-34.55%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 €2.69

$1.68 ₺82.8

79.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.67 €2.39

$0.59 ₺29.31

352.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.39 €3.92

$4.70 ₺232

-6.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 €2.96

$5.91 ₺292

-43.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.21 ₺59.8

-4.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 €1.58

$0.89 ₺43.97

98.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 €1.27

$2.19 ₺108

-34.70%

Eggs

$3.06 €2.73

$2.35 ₺116

30.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.44 €10.21

$10.42 ₺514

9.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.62 €7.69

$5.65 ₺279

52.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.58 €13.01

$20.94 ₺1,033

-30.37%

Apples (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.90 ₺93.8

8.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.91 €1.70

$2.31 ₺114

-17.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.04 €1.82

$1.28 ₺63.0

59.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.99 €1.78

$1.80 ₺88.7

10.56%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.65 ₺32.07

193.85%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 €1.54

$0.64 ₺31.82

168.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.25 ₺61.9

18.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.72

$0.56 ₺27.50

44.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.65 €11.29

$2.37 ₺117

433.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.41 €6.62

$13.42 ₺662

-44.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.05 €1.83

$2.40 ₺119

-14.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.86 €1.66

$3.48 ₺172

-46.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.72 €2.43

$0.89 ₺43.70

205.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$54.6 €48.71

$67.4 ₺3,328

-19.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.29 ₺63.9

70.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.28 €2.03

$0.92 ₺45.56

147.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.81 €22.14

$10.96 ₺541

126.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.47 ₺72.7

23.81%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$34.0K €30.3K

$50.8K ₺2.5M

-33.13%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$33.3K €29.7K

$44.5K ₺2.2M

-25.16%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$207 €184

$88.6 ₺4,374

133.15%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$17.70 €15.80

$11.59 ₺572

52.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.9 €47.23

$15.81 ₺781

234.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.2 €45.71

$77.2 ₺3,809

-33.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.21 €11.79

$22.74 ₺1,122

-41.91%

Cinema Ticket

$14.32 €12.78

$8.14 ₺402

75.92%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$661 €590

$1,008 ₺49.8K

-34.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K €14.4K

$25.6K ₺1.3M

-36.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.4 €50.4

$54.0 ₺2,663

4.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.53 €23.68

$40.83 ₺2,015

-35.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.5 €78.1

$98.9 ₺4,881

-11.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$100 €89.5

$96.6 ₺4,768

3.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$835 €745

$985 ₺48.6K

-15.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$714 €637

$650 ₺32.1K

9.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,210 €1,080

$1,983 ₺97.9K

-38.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 €906

$1,180 ₺58.2K

-14.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,176 €3,727

$3,138 ₺154.9K

33.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,243 €2,002

$1,780 ₺87.9K

26.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,789 €2,489

$1,205 ₺59.5K

131.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.9

40.92

-90.47%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Kortrijk: October 11, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Kortrijk

$714 39%

Istanbul

$650 41.9% 9% $65

Eating Out

Kortrijk

$299 16.3%

Istanbul

$223 14.4% 25.3% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kortrijk

$277 15.1%

Istanbul

$116 7.5% 58.1% $161

Groceries & Markets

Kortrijk

$262 14.3%

Istanbul

$260 16.8% 0.8% $2.1

Clothing & Footwear

Kortrijk

$122 6.7%

Istanbul

$131 8.4% 7.2% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

Kortrijk

$80 4.4%

Istanbul

$93 6% 17% $14

Getting Around

Kortrijk

$79 4.3%

Istanbul

$77 5% 2.7% $2.2

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $835 in Kortrijk versus $985 in Istanbul. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 131% higher in Kortrijk, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $73.0 in Kortrijk versus $55.0 in Istanbul. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $262 vs $260 – making Istanbul the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Kortrijk

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

05:03 5:03 AM

06:03 6:03 AM

1 h ahead of Kortrijk

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

76,700

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 49.36 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.24 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Kortrijk Istanbul 2,250 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Kortrijk
Istanbul

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Kortrijk vs Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Kortrijk is pricier by about 18%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,750 per month in Kortrijk and $2,325 in Istanbul. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Istanbul, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Kindergarten costs $661 per month in Kortrijk and $1,008 in Istanbul. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 1% more in Kortrijk, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Istanbul, where all-in costs run around $1,550, than in Kortrijk at $1,833. In Istanbul it covers expenses comfortably, while in Kortrijk it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Istanbul – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Istanbul. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Kortrijk makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.